Diocese: Diocese of the South
Deanery: Appalachian Deanery
Address
100 Lime Ln
Nicholasville, Kentucky 40356-4500
Website: bluegrassorthodox.org
Office: 859-361-2823
Church: 859-881-8144
Parish Contacts
Nicholasville, KY 40356
Lay Leadership
Directions
General Location
Saint Athanasius Orthodox Church is located on the north end of Nicholasville, Kentucky in the Orchard Subdivision adjacent to Walmart. Nicholasville is just 7 miles south of Lexington.
From Lexington
Take US-27/Nicholasville Rd south to Nicholasville. Turn left onto US-27 Business/N Main St. At the second traffic light (McDonald’s is on the right) turn left onto Peachtree St. Pass the Jessamine Medical Center on Peachtree and turn left onto Lime Lane. The church entrance is on the right.
From outside the greater Lexington area
From the South
As you are heading up I-75, take exit number 59 (Mount Vernon). Turn left on US Hwy 150. Continue on US-150 until you reach US-27. Turn right on to US-27 and continue until you reach Nicholasville. Remain on US-27 (do not take S Main St/US-27 Business) around Nicholasville. At the north side of Nicholasville turn right onto N Main St/US-27 Business. At the second traffic light (McDonald’s is on the right) turn left onto Peachtree St. Pass the Jessamine Medical Center on Peachtree and turn left onto Lime Lane. The church entrance is on the right.
Kentucky residents coming from north of Mount Vernon should take I-75 into Lexington. Take the Man o’ War Boulevard exit, and proceed west into Lexington on Man o’ War Boulevard to US-27. Turn left onto US-27/Nicholasville Rd south and continue to Nicholasville, following the directions from Lexington above.
From the North
Follow I-75 to Lexington, Kentucky. Take exit 115 Newtown Pike. Merge right onto KY-4 New Circle Rd. Follow KY-4/New Circle Rd to exit 19 US-27/Nicholasville Rd. Turn right onto US-27 south and follow the directions from Lexington above.
From the East
Follow I-64 to Lexington, Kentucky. At the southeast junction of I-75 and I-64, take I-75 south to the Man o’ War exit. Turn right and follow Man o’ War Boulevard to US-27. Turn left onto US-27/Nicholasville Rd south and follow the directions from Lexington above.
From the West
Follow I-64 toward Lexington, Kentucky. Take exit 58 US-60. Turn right off the exit ramp toward Versailles. Continue on US-60 past Versailles to Lexington. Turn right onto Man o’ War Boulevard (traffic light with Bluegrass Airport on the right, Keeneland on the left). Continue on Man o’ War Boulevard to US-27. Turn right onto US-27/Nicholasville Rd south and follow the directions from Lexington above.
Schedule of Services
Saturdays:
6:30 PM Saturday Night Vigil followed by Confessions
Sundays:
9:00 AM Sunday School (during school year)
9:40 AM 3rd and 6th Hours
10:00 AM Divine Liturgy followed by Fellowship
Hour Luncheon in the parish hall
Wednesdays:
6:30 PM Weekly Wednesday Vespers followed by Christian Education (also for Newcomers)
Feast Days: (see online calendar)
6:30 PM Vigil with Litya (on eves) followed by Confessions
Morning Divine Liturgy (time depends on day)
For a complete list of upcoming services, please visit the Monthly Calendar on the parish website.
Confessions are heard following Saturday and Feast Day Vigil (or Vespers) and also by appointment.
Parish Background
St. Athanasius was formally established as a mission of the Orthodox Church in America on the Feast of the Meeting of the Lord (February 2), 2002. The history of our community, however, extends beyond this “official” and canonical beginning. When the 25 founding members (including men, women, and children) formed St. Athanasius in February 2002, they came not only as new members of a new mission, but also, as newly-minted Orthodox Christians.
Their broader journey into the Orthodox Christian Faith began in the 1990’s with the personal journey of David and Rozanne Rucker. The Ruckers—formed in the Wesleyan tradition—had been posted to Hong Kong as Protestant missionaries. While there, they had come to realize the limitations of their Protestant heritage in conveying the Gospel of Christ to people not steeped in Western culture. The Ruckers’ struggle to preach the Gospel in ways that would “translate” into the cultural idiom of the Chinese people led the missionaries to explore ancient forms of Christianity, including Orthodoxy.
Through their explorations of “things Orthodox,” the Ruckers discovered Holy Trinity Cathedral in Indianapolis, a community of the Evangelical Orthodox Church (EOC). The EOC was founded in the late 1970’s by Protestant Evangelicals who were trying to “re-create” the early church. The EOC borrowed many forms from the Eastern Orthodox Church, while retaining a Protestant character.
In 1996, David and Rozanne Rucker formed a mission parish of the EOC in Nicholasville. As their journey continued, the members of the mission increasingly felt the spiritual call to become fully and authentically Orthodox. After a period of discernment, the mission in Nicholasville decided to seek entry into the Orthodox Church of America (OCA). And so it was that the faithful of Christ the Life-Giver EOC mission became the nucleus of St. Athanasius Orthodox Church in February 2002. Several months later, David Rucker was ordained to the Holy Priesthood in Dallas at the hands of the ever-memorable Archbishop Dmitri, founding hierarch of the Diocese of the South and the first bishop having care for St. Athanasius Orthodox Church.
In 2003, St. Athanasius was awarded both a diocesan and an OCA church-planting grant. The planting grants allowed Fr. David to leave his secular employment and devote himself completely to the needs of parish ministry. In December 2006, Fr. Justin Patterson was assigned pastor of St. Athanasius. The same month that Fr. Justin arrived also marked St. Athanasius’ graduation from our church planting grants.
One of the major challenges the parish faced in its first decade of existence was the need to get out of its storefront space and into a proper church building and campus. In 2011, St. Athanasius launched a capital campaign to help meet this need. The capital campaign and property search were both successful. After a year of construction, in July 2014, St. Athanasius took up residence in its own free-standing church located at 100 Lime Lane. Today, the parish community enjoys having a dedicated worship space (with a proper altar, nave, and narthex), a large parish hall, classrooms, and offices for use in parish education and administration. Since moving into our new church, St. Athanasius has seen steady growth - not only by bringing in converts to our Orthodox Faith, but also by welcoming home scores of “cradle Orthodox” from Eastern Europe, Africa, and elsewhere into our parish community. At present, we have greatly enriched the life of the parish, even as English remains our common tongue.
In February 2015, in conjunction with the celebration of St. Athanasius’ 13th Anniversary, Archbishop Nikon (Liolin), locum tenens of the diocese, and Archbishop Mark (Maymon) led the Dedication of the new church. In addition, Archbishop Nikon ordained Deacon Simeon Siskar to serve the growing community of St. Athanasius. On Pentecost of 2016, the parish welcomed our newly-elected Bishop (now Archbishop) Alexander (Golitzin) for his first archpastoral visit. Vladyka Alexander continues to be a frequent and welcome presence in our community.
In fall of 2017, St. Athanasius was one of 14 Orthodox parishes selected nationwide as a pilot parish for the Telos Project, a Lily-Endowment-funded initiative supporting work among 23-29 year-olds. Over the course of four years (2017-2020,) St. Athanasius is receiving $25,000 for work among young adults—and is using the Telos Project as a springboard for reflection about our ministries as we transition from the “pastoral model” of leadership to one that utilizes more lay leaders in ministry.
Even with our growth and development over the past 15 years, St. Athanasius continues to be guided by five core commitments:
1. Liturgical worship remains at the heart of all that St. Athanasius does. On average, we hold some kind of liturgical worship five days per week in our parish.
2. We have also worked hard to maintain a real sense of parish community by hosting weekly lunches after Liturgy, as well as regular social events among our men, women, and children.
3. Among the ministries that St. Athanasius Church has continued to develop is a program of total parish education, including Sunday School for children and adults, classes for inquirers, ongoing catechetical instruction, youth group, and work among college students and young adults. Our parish is committed to holding a Vacation Church School each summer and helping all the youth attend a church summer camp.
4. St. Athanasius is also fully engaged in supporting outreach and service to those in need. First among our local labors with those in need is our weekly Bread Ministry. For almost a decade, we have served Panera and Kroger surplus bread to people from our church doorstep, sharing leftovers with a local adult resident home in downtown Nicholasville. In addition, our parishioners engage in regular jail and refugee ministry.
5. Finally, a consistent thread in our work from the beginning of the parish is that, due to our proximity to so many colleges, universities, and Asbury Seminary, we are constantly sending people out—often to do church-related work. Over the years, we have supplied a half-dozen priests and clergy families to the broader Church, a number of missionaries, as well as faithful laypeople who go on to other places and contribute liberally to the building up of the Church around the country. This can be difficult, but we have come to see “sending out” as one of our core commitments as a parish.
The faithful of St. Athanasius take seriously the call to bear witness to Christ in an Orthodox manner. We encourage anyone living in the Bluegrass and beyond who might be interested in learning more about Orthodox Christianity to contact us. We are here for only two reasons—to grow in Christ ourselves and, in serving others, to share this precious gift of our Faith with all those whom the Lord brings to us.
